Whispers of Izola: Teen Eyes

About the sea, friends, phones and growing up in a small town

Just before the end of the school year, in the new episode of the Whispers of Izola podcast, we looked at our town through the eyes of teenagers. As adults, we like to describe Izola as a calm, safe and just-right-sized seaside town. But do young people growing up here experience it the same way?

This time, we hosted three young people from Izola: Nika Dolinšek Košir, Ana Božeglav and Ian Kaše. Each of them comes from a completely different world, and that is exactly why together they offer an interesting, honest and at times surprising insight into what it is like to grow up in Izola today. In the conversation, we do not only learn what they like about Izola, but also who has more screen time, what adults still do not fully understand about young people, and what Izola might look like in twenty years.

Nika Dolinšek Košir: “Izola is relaxed, safe and just the right size.”

With Nika, a student at Izola Secondary School, it quickly becomes clear that you cannot fit her into a single box. On the one hand, she is drawn to art: contemporary dance, theatre and books. On the other hand, she is fascinated by motorbikes, Formula 1, MotoGP and even a military path, as she has a military scholarship. In our conversation, we explored this intriguing mix of art, discipline and adrenaline, as well as how Izola is experienced by someone who moved here from a bigger city. And yes, if you listen until the end, you will also find out that one more thing has a very special place in her world: coffee at DeGrassi.

Ana Božeglav: “What I love most about Izola is that the sea is always close by.”

Is Ana a fiercely driven athlete or a rebellious teenager? The answer seems quite clear: both. She has tried almost every sport, but in the end she gave her heart to table tennis, in which she is now the national champion. We spoke with her about everything that makes up her everyday life: training, friends, summer evenings, life in the old town centre, and also whether being a teenager today is really that different from what their parents remember. Between the sea, sport and social life, Ana quickly shows that even a very active schedule can go hand in hand with completely ordinary teenage moments.

Ian Kaše: “Izola is just the right amount of calm and just the right size.”

Ian’s world has a really good soundtrack. He plays guitar, sings, and for the past two years has been performing with the band Vroči pedoči. What makes them special is that all four members of the band sing as well. In our conversation, we touched on why playing in a band is completely different from playing solo, what his musical everyday life looks like, and which concert he is most looking forward to this year. Since he lives a little further away from the town centre and his friends, he appreciates even more the things that make Izola close to his heart: peace, smallness, the sea, company and the feeling that nothing here is ever too far away.

Although Nika, Ana and Ian are quite different, they still meet at one important point: the sea means a lot to them, and they do not take it for granted. A sense of safety, the possibility of socialising, and the fact that Izola is small enough for many things to be literally within reach also matter to them.

The new episode of Whispers of Izola therefore brings not only three interesting young stories, but also a very good sense of how the generation growing up here experiences Izola today. Calm and safe? Definitely. Boring? Clearly not.

You are warmly invited to watch the new episode of Whispers of Izola.